ELECTION UPDATE: Voting in the Texas primary begins in just FOUR days!

Early voting starts February 18, 2020, which is also Educator Voting Day, and ends February 28. Our state’s primary elections on “Super Tuesday” will be March 3, 2020.

Races all over the state are heating up and drawing endorsements. Texas Parent PAC this week released a list of 10 endorsements of pro-public education candidates in contested primaries. Read the entire list and other election news in this week’s election roundup blog post by ATPE Lobbyist Mark Wiggins.

Educators face an incredibly important decision in this primary election cycle. The additional funding for schools and educator compensation provided by last year’s House Bill (HB) 3 could easily be taken away in 2021 if educators don’t show up to the polls and vote for pro-public education candidates like they did in 2018. We’re already seeing a renewal of attacks on public schools and educators. It’s important to know your rights when it comes to being an educator and a voter, and this blog post by ATPE Governmental Relations Director Jennifer Mitchell offers helpful reminders about rules educators should follow during elections.

Read up on the people running for the Texas Legislature or State Board of Education this year by viewing their candidate profiles here on Teach the Vote, which include responses to the ATPE Candidate Survey, legislators’ voting records, campaign contact information, and more. Watch this instructional video to learn the different ways you can search for candidate information using Teach the Vote. ATPE does not endorse candidates and invites all candidates to participate in our survey project and share information for their profiles that appear on Teach the Vote. If your favorite candidate has not answered our survey, please let them know that it’s not too late! Contact ATPE’s GR team for additional details.

There are still some upcoming “For the Future” candidate forums being hosted by the Raise Your Hand Texas Foundation. Click here to find out if there’s an event in your area where you can meet the candidates and hear more about their views on public education. For other resources to help you prepare for early voting, visit TexasEducatorsVote.com.

Finally, be sure to check out the latest issue of ATPE News, our quarterly magazine. The brand new Spring 2020 issue features additional election-related coverage to help you navigate the 2020 primaries.

FEDERAL UPDATE: Earlier this week, President Trump released his budget proposal for 2021. The education portion of the proposal includes plans to consolidate 29 federal education programs, including funding for charter schools and Title I, into a single block grant. While reducing overall funding for the U.S. Department of Education, the plan would increase funding by nearly the same amount in order to pour billions of dollars into a private school voucher program. Read more about the budget proposal in this blog post by ATPE Lobbyist Andrea Chevalier.

In other news this week, the federal government introduced SchoolSafety.gov, which is a new clearinghouse for school safety resources. This bank of resources, meant to aid in all stages of emergency situations, was a joint effort of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Department of Education, Department of Justice, and the Department of Health and Human Services. The website houses a variety of resources relating to bullying, mental health, school security personnel, school climate, action planning, and recovery, among others.

On Thursday, Governor Greg Abbott charged the Tri-Agency Workforce Initiative with building upon the reforms in House Bill (HB) 3 of the 86th Legislature to work towards long-term workforce development in Texas. Gov. Abbott created the initiative in 2016 to help develop links between education and the workforce, with the goal of “helping Texas grow in economic prosperity.” The commissioners of the Texas Education Agency, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, and the Texas Workforce Commission who make up the tri-agency initiative submitted a February 2020 report on their progress, which you can read here. According to the governor’s press release issued February 13, 2020, the three agencies will collaborate on a report showcasing strategies to achieve multiple educational and workforce goals. The report will be due to the governor by September 1, 2020. Check out a short summary of the initiative here.

Gary Gates, Lorraine Birabil, and Anna Eastman were sworn in Tuesday as new state representatives for Texas House Districts 28, 100, and 148, respectively. The swearing-in ceremony for Gates and Birabil took place at the Texas State Capitol, while Eastman was sworn in at Waltrip High School in Houston. Elected to replace state representatives who resigned in late 2019, these newly minted legislators will serve up to the start of the 2021 legislative session. All three are on the ballot in 2020, vying for the same House seat to begin a full term in 2021.

A recent national poll conducted by the National School Boards Action Center reflects that likely voters “love” their public schools and oppose public funding of for-profit charters and private schools. Sixty-four percent of the poll respondents said funding for public schools should be increased, with eight in 10 supporting an increase even if it meant an increase in taxes. Seventy-three percent do not want to send public dollars to private, religious, and home schools. Sixty-five percent agree that charter schools need oversight by local school boards and 80% are favorable to teachers in their community. Find the full poll results and a press release here.

ELECTION UPDATE: Special elections in three Texas House districts concluded on Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2020. The victors were Gary Gates (R) with 58.05% of the vote in House District (HD) 28, Lorraine Birabil (D) with 66.28% of the vote in HD 100, and Anna Eastman (D) with 65.47% of the vote in HD 148. Read more on the results in this election night blog post by ATPE Governmental Relations Director Jennifer Mitchell.

Early voting for the primary starts in just under three weeks on February 18, 2020, which is also Educator Voting Day. Primary election day follows two weeks later on March 3, 2020. Remember that the deadline to register to vote in the Texas primaries is Monday, Feb. 3. Verify your voter registration status here.

As the primaries get closer, here are helpful resources for educators and the general public:

Learn more about candidates running in 2020 for the Texas Legislature or State Board of Education by checking out their profiles here on Teach the Vote, which include answers to the ATPE Candidate Survey (where available) and legislators’ voting records.

This week ATPE submitted public comments on three proposed changes to administrative rules that would affect public schools, educators, and students.

First, ATPE formally commented on proposed changes to commissioner’s rules that regulate school district-charter partnerships. Senate Bill 1882 of 2017 enabled school districts to partner with charter entities to operate some of their campuses, and newly proposed rules have raised some concerns for ATPE and other education stakeholders. Read our comments here.

Next, the State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) is proposing changes to its certification rules that could benefit high school students interested in pursuing careers in the classroom. ATPE and the Texas Association of Future Educators (TAFE) submitted joint recommendations this week for the criteria associated with the educational aide certificate. Those interested in submitting input on this rule proposal can find more information here. The deadline for public comments is Feb. 3, 2020.

Finally, ATPE also shared ouir concerns with SBEC about rules relating to master teacher certificates that are slated to be eliminated as a result of last year’s House Bill 3. Those wishing to submit public comments on this rule review can find more information here. The deadline is Feb. 3.

As you can see, our advocacy for public education doesn’t stop when the legislative session ends. During the interim, it is important to stay engaged with the work of state boards and agencies implementing education laws and legislative committees as they study interim charges. Learn more about interim advocacy in this new blog post by ATPE Senior Lobbyist Monty Exter.

This week, Texans observed Holocaust Remembrance Week as designated by Gov. Greg Abbott after the 86th Legislature passed Senate Bill (SB) 1828 by Sen. José Menéndez in 2019. The Texas Holocaust and Genocide Commission (THGC) recommended the observance this week so as to include International Holocaust Remembrance Day, January 27, which when Auschwitz was liberated. Also this week, in Washington, DC, the U.S. House passed H.R. 943, referred to as the “Never Again Education Act” to provide grants and resources for Holocaust education programs. Find more information and related links in this blog post by ATPE Lobbyist Andrea Chevalier.

The State Board of Education (SBOE) met today, Jan. 31, 2020, to conclude its week-long January meeting. ATPE Lobbyist Mark Wiggins attended the meeting and provided this update.

Member Tom Maynard (R-Florence), who chairs the Committee on School Finance/Permanent School Fund (PSF), updated members on the status of the fund. He reported that the PSF’s investments total $46.5 billion, and the fund is being utilized as collateral to guarantee $87 billion in bonds out of a $117 billion bond guarantee capacity. Of the bonds backed by the PSF, $85 billion of those are bonds for independent school districts, and $2 billion are bonds for charter schools.

The SBOE manages a portion of the PSF, while the School Land Board (SLB) under the General Land Office (GLO) manages the other portion. Legislation passed during the 2019 legislative session to address a dispute over PSF management expanded the SLB from three members to five, two of whom would be recommended by the SBOE. Those two members have now been seated on the SLB, and the SBOE is working on setting up a joint meeting in April.

The board spent much of the morning Friday discussing board training requirements for local school district trustees, and ultimately decided to maintain the current rules unchanged. Members also voted to give preliminary approval to curriculum standards for a new course on African-American studies, which would make Texas the fifth state in the nation to offer such a course, according to TEA officials.

Today, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) released the 2019-20 accreditation statuses for Texas public school districts and open-enrollment charter schools. Accreditation statuses encapsulate a wide variety of factors, such as financial and academic accountability and compliance with reporting requirements. Districts and charters that are assigned anything other than an accredited status must notify parents and property owners in the district. Find your district’s status here.

There is just over one week left to ensure you are registered to vote! After you have your voting plan ready, sit back, relax, and check out this week’s education news from the ATPE Governmental Relations team.

ELECTION UPDATE: Early voting for the special election runoffs has been going on this week and continues through today with the election wrapping up next Tuesday, January 28. So far turnout for most of these elections has been low. In House District (HD) 148, for example, fewer than 500 people had voted either in person or by mail through the first three days of early voting. Even in the race to represent HD 28, the most hotly contested of the races, only about 2000 votes had been cast, a small minority of the districts total registered voters. ATPE Lobbyist Mark Wiggins looks at more of the trends in the HD 28 race in this week’s Election Roundup.

With such low turnout in this sort of election, every vote cast is hugely important. We encourage all educators and public education supporters to vote in every election for which they are eligible. For more information on the special election candidates see our recent blog post by ATPE Government Relations Director Jennifer Mitchell.

As soon as the special elections wrap up next week all eyes will turn to the Texas primary elections. Early voting for the primary starts in just over three weeks, February 18, 2020, with election day two weeks later on March 3, 2020.

Remember that the deadline to register to vote in the primaries is Feb. 3. You can verify your voter registration status here.

As the primaries get closer, here are some helpful resources for educators and the general public:

Learn more about the candidates by checking out their profiles here on Teach the Vote. All candidates running in 2020 for the Texas House or Senate or the State Board of Education are featured on our website, with their answers to the ATPE Candidate Survey (where available) and existing legislators’ voting records on education issues.

Additionally, check out the upcoming candidate forums around the state, kicking off next Friday January 29, being sponsored by the Raise Your Hand Texas Foundation. Click here for details and the full list of their “For the Future” town hall events beginning this month.

The United States Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue this week. The case centers on a voucher proposal passed by the Montana legislature that was subsequently stuck down by Montana’s supreme court for violating that state’s constitutional provisions against the use of public funding for religious schools. Check out this post on SCOTUSblog.com for more insights on the oral arguments. A decision in the case is expected by this summer.

Thank you to all ATPE members who answered our first “Your Voice” survey this winter on Advocacy Central. The results provided valuable insight into which policy issues our members want lawmakers to work on in the future. For a closer look at the issues ranked highest, check out this blog post from ATPE Lobbyist Andrea Chevalier.

ELECTION UPDATE: We have just over a month until the Texas primary election on March 3, 2020. Check out ATPE Lobbyist Mark Wiggins’s most recent election-related blog post for the latest campaign finance insights and other tidbits. Remember that the deadline to register to vote in one of the primaries is Feb. 3, and you can verify your voter registration status here.

As the primaries get closer, here are some helpful resources for educators and the general public:

Learn more about the candidates by checking out their profiles here on Teach the Vote. All candidates running in 2020 for the Texas House or Senate or the State Board of Education are featured on our website, with their answers to the ATPE Candidate Survey (where available) and existing legislators’ voting records on education issues.

Learn everything you need to know about Texas elections in the Texas Tribune’s five-week crash course called “Teach Me How to Texas.” It’s free and fun! Click here to sign up.

Additionally, check out the upcoming candidate forums around the state being sponsored by the Raise Your Hand Texas Foundation. Click here for details and the full list of their “For the Future” town hall events beginning this month.

RELATED: If you live the Houston or Dallas area, don’t forget about the upcoming runoff election for three vacant House seats in House Districts 28, 100, and 148. Early voting starts Tuesday, Jan. 21. Registered voters in those districts can vote in the runoff even they skipped the first special election back in November. Learn more about the special election candidates on our Resources page.

ATPE’s Monty Exter

The Texas Education Agency (TEA) held a public hearing on Monday regarding proposed new commissioner’s rules affecting expansion of charter schools in Texas. ATPE Senior Lobbyist Monty Exter joined other education stakeholders, including school district leaders and parents, at the hearing to testify on proposed revisions to the charter performance framework and charter expansion amendment process. Their input focused on concerns about the potential for significant expansion of charter schools with little state oversight or consideration of the fiscal consequences or impact on students.

Specific points offered through the testimony included the following:

TEA does not consider proximity to existing campuses when approving new charter school campuses, which can lead to duplication, waste, and inefficiency. Existing school districts near the new charter campus retain fixed costs but receive less funding.

State law requires TEA to consider the impact on all students served by the Texas public school system when proposing rule changes like these. This includes the economic impact of a program serving only a small subset of students and the educational impact on students, especially if the local population is not large enough to support robust programming at both the existing school(s) and the added charter campus in the same location.

TEA already has approved more than 557,000 seats at charter schools, which exceeds the enrollment level on which the state’s budget is based. If all those seats were filled, it would cost the state more than $11 billion over a two-year period s and consume more than a quarter of the funding under the Foundation School Program. Moreover, this maximum approved enrollment capacity of 557,000 would grow even larger under the commissioner’s proposals.

The state’s performance framework should not reward charter operators for things like maintaining their status as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, which is already required by law.

A charter operator should not be labeled “high quality” if its performance is based on excluding students with disabilities or filtering out other students who are harder to teach. Under federal law, TEA must ensure all public schools identify, enroll, and serve special education students.

ATPE joined more than a dozen other education advocacy groups in submitting formal written comments to the commissioner, as well. Click here and here to read the text of the proposed rule changes that were published in the Texas Register on Nov. 22 and Nov. 29, 2019, respectively.

Thank you to all ATPE members who took our very first “Your Voice” survey this winter. The results provided valuable insight into what our members’ top policy issues are, such as standardized testing, educator compensation and benefits, and the Teacher Retirement System (TRS). Look for a blog post diving deeper into these issues on Teach the Vote next week.

On Thursday, Jan. 16, 2020, President Donald Trump announced from the Oval Office that nine federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Education (ED), would release new guidance regarding religious expression. In public schools specifically, the new guidance clarifies protections for students who want to pray or worship in school and eases access to federal funds for religious organizations that provide social services. The guidance also requires that, in order to receive federal funds under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, school districts must certify with their state agency that they do not have policies in place that would prevent students’ right to pray. Additionally, states must have a process in place to receive complaints against school districts regarding religious expression and must notify ED about such complaints.

Under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, students and teachers have a right to pray in public schools. However, while acting in their official capacities, teachers, administrators, and other school employees are not permitted to lead, encourage, or discourage students from participating in prayer. Read more about the new rules in this reporting by the Washington Post.

On Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2020 three Texas voters, the League of Women Voters, and the Move Texas Civic Fund filed a federal lawsuit to challenge Texas’s lack of online voter registration when residents update or renew their driver’s licenses online. Under The federal motor voter law allows for voter registration when obtaining a driver’s license, but in Texas, the law is only carried out in face-to-face interactions. This is the second iteration of the case, which was originally dismissed by a federal court because the plaintiff had become re-registered to vote before a verdict was reached and lost standing to sue. Should the plaintiffs ultimately win this latest case, Texas would have to allow online voter registration through the driver’s license process. Read more about the new case in this reporting from the Texas Tribune.

As ATPE Lobbyist Andrea Chevalier reported earlier today on our blog, Texas House Speaker Dennis Bonnen (R-Angleton) has announced his appointment of Rep. Giovanni Capriglione to chair the powerful House Appropriations committee. Read more about the announcement here.